• Record Label: Elektra
  • Release Date: Nov 9, 2004
Metascore
66

Generally favorable reviews - based on 28 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 14 out of 28
  2. Negative: 0 out of 28
  1. What carries the album is, I swear, the skits.
  2. Q Magazine
    80
    As a daring experiment which flies in the face of the derivative tendencies evident in the modern music industry, it succeeds. [Dec 2004, p.140]
  3. Filter
    76
    A pretty downright awesome collection of hip-hop songs... that push the boundaries of just what exactly a hip-hop song can be. [#13, p.104]
  4. Spin
    75
    Pursues a darker strain of irony. [Dec 2004, p.124]
  5. Entertainment Weekly
    75
    Less charmingly loopy than [previous album So How's Your Girl], but the boys can still kick occasionally. [12 Nov 2004, p.120]
  6. Urb
    70
    An ecelctic mess that will send purists of all stripes screaming bloody murder. You, of course, will love it. [Dec 2004, p.105]
  7. Rolling Stone
    70
    The skits keep it realer than reality TV. [25 Nov 2004, p.88]
  8. Although White People doesn’t break any of the barriers ‘So…How’s Your Girl?’ did, it is none the less a graduation.
  9. At 68 minutes, "White People" outstays its welcome and the skits are lame at best... but there's still much to like here.
  10. While "White People" certainly shows no lack of adventure... one is ultimately left wishing that Dan and Paul toned the wackiness down a few knobs this time around.
  11. Blender
    70
    As eclectic as these 13 songs are, they all sound of a piece: Experlty cut and finished with fine details. [Nov 2004, p.135]
  12. The overall vibe is laid-back and the production slick, with dark moments, fun bits and some cool guests. But it lacks the punch that would make it a classic, and it's all too easy to forget that it's even playing.
  13. New Musical Express (NME)
    70
    Often witty and always wise. [27 Nov 2004, p.61]
  14. White People, for all its ambitions, fails to coalesce.
  15. White People, at its worst, acts as sort of a middling appendix to So, Where's Your Girl?.
  16. Alternative Press
    60
    Makes you scratch your head as much as nod it. [Dec 2004, p.162]
  17. Mojo
    60
    More attention seems to have been paid to assembling the cast than finding something for them to record. [Dec 2004, p.98]
  18. Uncut
    60
    The humourless skits drag... but somehow the Handsome Boy charm still wins through. [Dec 2004, p.137]
  19. White People has something for everyone, as well as something guaranteed to irritate or turn off everyone, whether it's undistinguished rap-metal or tiresome comedy skits that'll have less indulgent listeners reaching repeatedly for the track-skip button.
  20. Under The Radar
    60
    Wildly inconsistent but sometimes brilliant. [#8, p.110]
  21. It's obvious after a few listens that the weight of the talent collected here hurts White People as often as it helps.
  22. The schizophrenia on display here is not of the dramatic sort that intrigues or interests; it’s a very real disorder that befuddles and annoys the listener.
  23. Los Angeles Times
    50
    It's all very fun and creative, but, ironically, the duo fall into the common hip-hop traps of being short on actual hooks and not knowing when to edit themselves. [15 Dec 2004]
  24. I wouldn't go so far as to say that White People should never have happened... but Paul and Dan would do well to move on while they're still ahead.
  25. The songs are sprightly but not riveting, the beats competent but not galvanizing.
  26. Stuck trying to re-create the daring excitement, Handsome Boy Modeling School turn in an album that's half as interesting as their debut, and half as interesting as their guest list.
  27. Paul and Dan, knowing that the Dating Game skits sandwiching the album were just a poor shadow of the 3 Feet High And Rising game show, had to up the Wacky Factor within the songs themselves. “More guests! More cray-zee guests!"
  28. Things lurch heavy-handedly from reggae to rap to 1950s film music.
User Score
8.2

Universal acclaim- based on 9 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 8 out of 9
  2. Negative: 0 out of 9
  1. DiabloP
    Dec 4, 2005
    9
    I have had this album for a long time...i have never seen any reviews of it until now and just let me say that the ratings i have seen are I have had this album for a long time...i have never seen any reviews of it until now and just let me say that the ratings i have seen are completely wrong (my opinion). This is a great album that does a awesome job of blending genres. Any fan of the new DangerDoom album should go back and by this album immediately. Be prepared to be Awed. Full Review »
  2. KingCosmos
    May 18, 2005
    9
    am a rap and alternative fan! this blends both sounds! in ma opinion this is a great album! jus missing verses from MF DOOM, NAS,COMMON,MIKE am a rap and alternative fan! this blends both sounds! in ma opinion this is a great album! jus missing verses from MF DOOM, NAS,COMMON,MIKE SKINNER and Chris martin well! thats jus my opinion! Full Review »
  3. LawrenceP
    Mar 25, 2005
    8
    There's some magic in "white people". The first half is very pleasing and almost perfect, but things are hit and miss in the later half.